Is it within the first year of ownership [eligible for the factory extended warranty]?

If so, start with the F & I Manager at the dealership in Chico, California [get the details from the MBUSA website]. She has traditionally offered rock-bottom prices on the factory extended warranty. Then, you can either buy from them or use the info to get your neighborhood dealer to match or better the price. ANY dealer can sell the factory extended warranty, for ANY price they see fit. Ours was discounted nearly 25% from "list".

If the car isn't eligible for the factory warranty, I can't help - have no opinions or insights about the various 3rd party warranties out there.

Also, I wonder what they were thinking. I've heard no one complain about the performance of the C320. I also find few people buying the C320 over the C240 because the C240s performance is "okay" and its not worth the extra money to most to upgrade to the larger engine. Now, it will presumably cost even more to upgrade to get unneeded power. This may force me into a C240.

Well the engine is new to the C-Class and new overall as it just debuted in the 2005 SLK350. I don't think engines are of any worry at Mercedes no more than anyone else. The C-Class should finally be more reliable now considering it is entering its last 2 1/2 years of production.

...is the classic MB all-aluminum V6, with new 4-valve heads, and I guess that doesn't qualify it in my mind as a "beta test". It's been offered on the SLK, but also on the S-class in all markets except this one, and is an example of where they are going with all of their engines. [The v6s and v8s share a common architecture and can be produced on the same assembly line]. There is simply nothing "risky" about this engine, or much of anything else with the C-Class these days....it's a proven commodity.

Eventually, the family of V6s with the new heads will range from 2.4 to 3.0 to 3.5, with hp ratings from just under 200 to 350+ with turbocharging. But drivetrains have never been the problem with these cars - it was always the electronics.

The spread between the C240 and C320 was already too great, in the sense that few C320s are being sold, as far as I can tell. Will an even more expensive C350 have any market? But that's not my personal concern. Mine is that when the C350 comes out, there will probably be some good deals on the C320s already on dealer lots so perhaps I should just hold off on everything.

Yeah, can't help you there - I've always thought the C320 was overpriced, but it is an old MB [and BMW] tradition to make huge $ jumps between models with the next biggest engine. They always throw in more equipment to help justify it, but I've always found this to be a poor tradeoff and no bargain. We're perfectly content with the performance of our C240, with 168 hp and 0-60 in the mid 8s. We took our last real road trip in October, including a lot of two-lane passing, and I simply never felt the need for the extra hp....but there is a whole generation now who thinks you have to get to 60 in less than 7 seconds [or is it now 6 seconds?]. In my day, this was supercar territory....whatever the market demands, I guess...

My dash indicator light, "check engine" is on and when tested comes up with the Fuel Trim Bank 1 error. My mechanic replaced the oxygen sensor last summer and this light went off but it's back. And, it won't pass the Illinois emissions test until it is fixed. Does anyone know what is a Fuel Trim Bank 1 error and what is the cause? My mechanic is a German Master Mechanic and he said it was nothing to worry about but that was when I lived in Virginia. Now, I need to get it fixed. Any ideas?

I'm actively in the purchasing phase now and I was looking at old posts here and noticed reference to the "C2" package. Will you explain what that was? Obviously, MB has changed their naming conventions for packages and options since then.

....for the '02 model year meant sunroof, rear sunshade, and rain-sensing wipers. You have to be specific about the model year you're inquiring about - the package designations change pretty much every year.

Ah, so from your post #5931 you basically got only the sunroof and metallic paint. I really only WANT the light pkg and the powerseat pkg (plus metallic paint) but it looks like everyone forces you to get the sunroof and the 6-cd disc changer. Unfortunately, I'm not going to get the deal you got because you got factory cash of what -- $1500? But it doesn't look like I'm going to be able to get the additional $3000 off that you got either. So far, I can't even get invoice plus IRG. I'll keep plugging away though. There are lots of dealerships out there and I find I don't mind negotiating as much as I did when I was younger. I guess it is email that has really made the difference.

In our case, it was year-end [Sept of '02, and the '03s were already coming off the trucks], the car had been in their stock for 5+ months, and there was a $3000 [!] dealer incentive on the table. So we got $4500 off, the dealer still made money, and they put a car on the street that was more than ripe.

Yes, for all practical purposes, it is impossible to get a sedan without the sunroof. Dealers are afraid to order them for stock, because they claim most customers won't buy them. Personally, I find the roof to be a useless option, and if I ordered a car from scratch [for overseas delivery, for example] I would not pay for it. BMW is about to make it standard on the new 3er - that at least is intellectually honest, if not a better solution.

If you waited until late summer, the kind of deal we got tends to be quite common....less so at this time of year. Right now, MBUSA might be offering some subvented financing, but their inventories on the C sedan are within reason, and it just isn't the time for big dealer incentives to be on the table.

Just so you all know the C-Class will recieve all new engines for 2006, save the C55 AMG.

The C230 will have a V6 with 200hp, the C240 will become the C280 with a 227hp V6 and the C320 as you know will become the C350 with 268hp. All will go on sale sometime this summer. Naturally the dealers play dumb about this because they want to clear out existing stock.

"Engine initiative: new six-cylinder units in the C-Class, E-Class and SLK-ClassFrom spring 2005 the newly developed, powerful six-cylinder engines will also be available for the C-Class, E-Class and SLK-Class. These new power units better their predecessors by up to 32 percent in output and up to 27 percent in torque. With four completely new V6 engines, the C-Class takes a clear lead in its market segment where output and torque are concerned. Of the new engines, three are V6 petrol units with 150 kW/204 hp (C 230), 170 kW/231 hp (C 280) and 200 kW/272 hp (C 350). The C 320 CDI with the state-of-the-art V6 diesel engine (165 kW/224 hp) also joins the line-up.

In addition to the new E 350 (200 kW/272 hp) Mercedes-Benz is offering the new model E 280 in the E-Class from spring 2005. This is powered by a 170 kW/231 hp six-cylinder engine developing a torque of 300 Newton metres. The new V6 thus betters the previous E 240 by more than 30% in output and 25% in torque.

With the new models E 280 CDI (140 kW/190 hp) and E 320 CDI (165 kW/224 hp), the diesel range in the E-Class is set to be even more attractive and dynamic.

The new SLK 280 will be launched in the SLK-Class in spring 2005. Equipped with the 170 kW/231 hp V6 engine, this two-seater accelerates from standstill to 100 km/h in just 6.3 seconds. The combined fuel consumption of the SLK 280 is 9.7 litres per 100 kilometres.

jcat707 - do you have any regrets about having to take the pewter? I like my silver -- it's just common as dirt!

C350 - yes, nice car/engine but will there be that many sales? The C320 is already overpriced.After putting a mere 100 miles on my C240, I can tell you I have NO regrets about getting it instead of the C320.

I owned my 2001 C320 until this month and quickly turned it in. Great mechanical car, not so great with all the electric and electronics. my advice: as soon as the mfr. warranty is done, trade it in.I had so many electronic glitches, all fixed courtesy of MB; nonetheless, when i asked if the issues were common, they would say no. But then i found that MB was sending special parts to correct issues with the headlights burning out frequently and other electric stuff. The one that sent me over the edge was the power seat modules drawing the battery down, costing me 2 batteries ($300) and then the modules ($900+). MBUSA was kind enough to reimburse half after I complained to their VP of QA in Montvale NJ ( highly reccomended approach).No longer a german car fan ( for now)

I'm back after not reading or posting much for about 18 months. Sorry for my absence, but I took a part-time job teaching college courses online, which took lots of time.

My Y2K C230 is running well at only 18,000 miles: I love the car, no major problems so far. Stored for winters to keep the salt off of it. My best defense against rust on the C230 is using a '93 Toyota pickup now with 208,000 miles as a daily driver in the winter.

I have 3+ years left on the extended warranty, so will probably keep the MB until at least early 2008.

Our very basic '02 C240 Automatic [with just the C2 pkg - as "stripped" as I could get it] went into service in Sept of '02, after being produced in the Bremen plant in January [it was delivered to the dealer in March, and just got moved around from one lot to another for 5 months].

We currently have 15,000 miles, and no new problems to report. The only issues surfaced in the first couple of months, and were quickly resolved - wheel alignment, which was noticeable on the acceptance drive and fixed within the first week, and a minor differential leak that was traced to a plugged vent tube and corrected on the first try. So far, knock on wood, this is all we have to report.

I am in love with the way the car behaves on the road, especially on extended trips, which occur infrequently with us. Our last real road trip was on October, and the car was just wonderful - plenty of passing power, smooth, quiet, 27-29 mpg at ridiculous speeds in the desert, great all-day seats. We have another long trip coming up next month....otherwise, the car gets used on the average of once a week for 20 miles or so. We can walk to just about everything from our condo in Vancouver WA, so we are now averaging only 5k-6k miles a year, even with long trips factored in..

Our warranty runs to Sept of '09, and at the moment, I can think of no reason why we might make a change before then. I would like a diesel, so we periodically flirt with the idea of a VW Passat or the new Jetta, but the real world cost of making a change, and the likelihood that nothing we could buy would equal the C's comfort on long trips, has dissuaded me. I was very interested in the MB B-Class, but their decision to pull the car from our market quashed that idea. We'd like a little more trunk space and a little more rear legroom, in a package not significantly larger than the C, which of course is what the B is all about - anyway, we are happy with the car [our 14th MB], and plan to keep it at least as long as the warranty runs - with our low annual usage, the car will probably has less than 40k miles on it when the extended warranty expires.

I've read your post for years about Mercedes, always very informative.

I wanted to ask you what you think about upcoming C280, C350 and the V6 replacement for the C230? I think the C280 will have about 227hp if the standard minus 4 applies like it does on the C350 (272hp/268hp here).

Finally if you were to buy another Mercedes besides a C or B (if they decide to bring it here someday) which one would it be?

Well, they're playing games again with the model designations as the new engines appear in the C; the actual displacements are 2.5, 3.0, and 3.5 [I think], all V6s with the new 4-valve heads. Even the entry-level car [which apparently, they are indeed going to call the C230, inexplicably] will have over 200hp, and with the new 7-spd automatic, it's all more - more power, better fuel consumption, cleaner exhaust; wish I could justify the cost.

The E diesel is the only thing in the line that would appeal to me besides what we already have, and that's $50k and up - and we are all done with $50k cars. I just wish we could have the full line of models, and equally, the full line of engines, in the NA market - a B with the turbo-diesel is what I really want, but....

The new C350 Sport Looks like it is going to be a great car, lots of fun to drive. I'm a manual transmission junkie, so I can't wait to get my hands on one. Has anybody driven one yet or when will they be out?

At the NY Auto show, MB had an entry level SLK280 that was powered by I believe (not sure of the displacement here) a 3.0 Liter 24 valve V6 that produced somewhere in the neighborhood of 225hp. Will this be the new "base" engine in the C-Class for the US? Do you think MB will offer a C"280" Sport version?